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Marist Mission Ranong Volunteers

posted on October 21, 2013 by admin
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Volunteers, Maurice and Natalie arrived at the Marist Mission in Ranong 18 months ago, they’ve made a made a huge contribution to the students and the Education Programme.

Maurice and Natalie’s story

MMR volunteers Maurice and Nat

MMR volunteers Maurice and Natalie

We are a married couple from Wellington, New Zealand and we have been the onsite tutors for the online university programme.

Initially we agreed to work in Ranong for six months, but after spending just a few weeks with our students we both knew that this was a group worth sticking around for.

And so 18 months later we are still here.

We remember when we first met our online class; nine very nervous looking faces looked at us expectantly.

There were

  • Toby and George from Karen state who had walked for days from their refugee camps to join this program
  • Jack sat next to them and even though he barely spoke a word, we could tell there was more to him than met the eye.
  • 17 year old Leah was bright eyed and alert, with a maturity beyond her years.
  • Samson kept nodding and smiling at us reassuringly.

We asked them to write a paragraph about themselves and it took an hour. We encouraged them to ask questions but there was only silence.

We could tell though, that there was something very special about this group and all they needed was a bit of support.

Fast forward 18 months the students are now in their final course of their diploma and they have

  • now introduced themselves many different times to many different lecturers
  • asked countless questions and
  • written thousands of words in forum entries, essays and presentations, and
  • last week they even debated each other on topics as complex as ‘effectiveness is more important than efficiency’ and ‘managers should only hire applicants with an internal locus of control’.

As we watched them stand up there at the podium, and speak with such passion and confidence, hardly looking at their notes, we were amazed at how far they had come.

Learning is a two way street

We’ve also learnt lots and there are many things that we wouldn’t have been able to do without them, like helping us take our cat to the vet, paint our apartment, and learn Thai and Burmese.

However we think the most important thing they have taught us is that when you are away from home, a warm smile, some kind words, and the ability to laugh at yourself, are priceless.

We remember once saying to a fellow teacher that we wanted to go on Mission to make a difference. She very wisely told us that when you go on Mission, it’s the people there that make the most profound difference to you.

When we think of our group of online students, she couldn’t have been more right.

Filed Under: Front Page Image, Visitor stories

Marist Centre Blessed

posted on August 4, 2013 by admin
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openingdancingThe Marist Centre in Ranong was blessed and opened in June 2013 by Bishop Joseph Prathan of the Sura Thani Diocese supported by two Bishops from Myanmar.

The Blessing and Opening was celebrated with prayer, dancing and singing and performances by Marist Mission Ranong Students.

The Ceremony was also attended by Fr Pat Devlin, the Marist Superior of Thailand-Philippines District, by Fr Kevin Stewart, with Geoff Henry, from the Marist Mission Centre Australia,  3 Thai priests and 3 Burmese priests, the Catholic network organizations, the catholic community in Ranong, friends from Singapore, and the Marist Brothers (FMS) from Bangkok.

Fr Jimmy McElroy and Irish students from St. Mary’s College in Dundalk, Ireland were also present during the ceremony.

The whole Marist Team now enjoy working together in one Centre and providing Education, Health and Migrant Support Programmes daily to hundreds of Burmese Migrants and their families.

Filed Under: Front Page Image, News

Ireland’s St Mary’s Dundalk visit Ranong

posted on July 11, 2013 by admin
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irishvisitStudents from the Marist Secondary School Dundalk, Ireland have been making the journey to Ranong, Southern Thailand for the past 3 years to discover a little about what life on a misson is like.

Each year the students take part in Summer camps organised in a Thai school but attended by Burmese migrants also. Here they teach English to local Thai and Burmese students, do activities and generally get to know the children.

Fr. Jimmy McElroy is the longstanding link between these two communities facilitating the trip each year with teacher Michelle Dullaghan on hand to keep things running smoothly.

This year they even had a cameraman with Michelles’ husband Wayne Doherty coming along to discover what is it that keeps Michelle coming back!

This year’s group of 8 students came ready to take on the challenge of teaching. They had the lessons prepared and were even armed with hurleys and footballs – GAA has reached Ranong! Watch out Co. Louth there could be a few new players coming your way soon.

The entire trip provides exposure to many new and varied experiences for the visiting students; from arrival in Bangkok navigating the Skytrain to the Buddhist Temples and Grand Palace to arriving in the tropical and more traditional town of Ranong.

On Saturday they crossed the border to Myanmar by boat, visiting the charming but chaotic town of Kawthung.

Fr. Gregory was tour guide in his mighty minibus taking on the hairpin bends to the fabulous viewpoint before a very tasty lunch at the kindergarten, a visit the Sisters from Our Lady of the Misson and a quick spin around the local area and a chance to pick up some souvenirs before hopping onto our boats for the choppy crossing back to Thailand.

The rest of the week was a blur of classes and activities with 3 full days in Eakasin Thai School teaching the English Camps. They covered many topics like the weather, directions, sports and hobbies and put their new words into practice with classic games like “stuck in the mud” and ” Simon Says”.

The week finished up with a day in the MMR centre.

Some of the students spent the morning teaching about life in Ireland and getting taught about life in Myanmar and Ranong in return.

Meanwhile the girls accompanied the health team on their home visits and met a few of the many HIV AIDs patients in the community.

In the afternoon everyone hit the sports field trialing the new equipment – putting the theme of “fun and friendship” into action.

The day wrapped up with a talk from the director of the health program at MMR, Kirsten Sloan, about the work the program does providing care and education for those with HIV AIDs.

After a well deserved day off – the group hit the road for the journey back to Ireland taking with them great memories, new friends and the knowledge they have made a difference.

Filed Under: Front Page Image, News

Young Burmese tell of experience as migrants

posted on June 23, 2013 by admin
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boyonboatEvery year 150,000 Burmese migrants flood the border into Thailand and the majority of these come to Ranong to work in the fishing industry and factories.

The work is repetitive but demanding, non-exploitive jobs are hard to come by.

Migrants, generally without work permits, can work for up to 12hrs a day in cramped, dark and stinking conditions for up to 20 hours a day on trawlers, returning home only every few months.

In these conditions, education is a leg up.

Burmese learning centres offer a primary level education to the migrant children, providing basic literacy and numeracy skills.

Secondary education is limited to those accepted to Thai schools and whose parents can afford to let them study.

HIV is a massive problem in Ranong, money is needed to pay for ARV and other related medical expenses as well as basic living expenses.

Some Marist Mission Ranong students have now finished school and have been inspired to serve and become ‘teachers’ for these children. They are participants or graduates of the online diploma class run at the Marist Centre in Ranong.

Sunday 23rd June Marks World Day of Prayer for Refugees and Migrants.

Filed Under: Front Page Image, News

2nd Burmese Youth Camp

posted on June 16, 2013 by admin
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burmesecamp

2nd Burmese Youth Camp at Marist Prayer House

In March 2013, ‘The Future Group”  Youth Leaders had a weekend camp at the Marist Community Prayer House on the edge of Ranong.

Over a weekend the Youth Leaders were helped to reflect on their lives, appreciate their Burmese Culture and the traditions of their different ethnic groups. Identifying what they were passionate about, how to set goals and develop a hope and plan for their future were some of the workshops and topics discussed together.

One of the leaders summarised the reflection of the group as they recognised how Burmese Culture influences their lives and plans for their future.

‘In Burmese culture, parents decide for everything for their children and we, as children, are not allowed to share our ideas and say no to parents decisions. But we have come to recognise from our learning that we are able to think about our own future and have the courage to share this within our family. Bit by bit our parents may understand us and we can negotiate with our parents.”

A number of the Leaders have a hope and dream to study the University Online Learning Programme offered at Marist Mission Ranong. One of the group shared that  “I just don’t think about studying for myself anymore but I’m now thinking to help my own family and community with my work.”

 

The strong bonds of friendship have been growing with these leaders and a camp together helped them share and listen more deeply to each other.

In one exercise the leaders recognised that a common experience and desire was to help Burmese Migrant Children who were not able to go to schools.

One of the great experiences the Leaders enjoyed was sitting around  the bonfire on the cold windy night and sharing in trust with their friends and Group Leaders the blocks and struggles they experienced in achieving their goals.

Filed Under: Front Page Image, News

Marist Centre officially opened

posted on May 25, 2013 by admin
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Mr. Buaking led the cutting of ribbon to officially open the Marist Centre.

Mr. Buaking led the cutting of ribbon to officially open the Marist Centre.

The newly built Marist Centre (MC) was officially opened  May 21, 2013. The opening was attended by different Thai government authorities headed by Mr. Pritcha Buaking, the Director of the Ministry of Education of Ranong, Thailand.

The opening ceremony was started by the introduction of Marist Mission Ranong as a catholic organization under the Suratthani Catholic Foundation, which was followed by the acknowledgment speech of Mr. Buaking. In his speech, Mr. Buaking thanked the whole MMR team for the wondrous service they show to the Burmese migrant community  of Ranong

The next day after the opening ceremony, classes in high school and preschool levels resumed.The students and teachers were very excited and delighted to be in the newly opened Marist Centre.  MMR’s Education, Health and Migrant Support Teams finally started to work together under one roof.

 

 

     

 

Filed Under: News

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Marist Asia Foundation

Ranong is a fishing village in the South of Thailand where migrant Burmese come to escape conflict and poverty in their own country.

The Marist Mission Ranong seeks to help Burmese refugees by offering educational opportunities, supporting their basic health needs, and assist migrants as they seek a better future for themselves and their children.

The Marist Mission Ranong is an initiative of the Society of Mary and it relies heavily on the involvement of its friends and supporters.

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